Newcastle United manager Chris Hughton was sacked yesterday by club owner Mike Ashley.

Hughton took charge of Newcastle in a bizarre series of incidents. The club were at their lowest ebb. Before getting relegated, Newcastle had seen two of their favorites in Kevin Keegan and Alan Shearer take charge of the club. Keegan resigned after a day of talks with the board and its unpopular owner. The reaction from the club’s long-suffering supporters was as extreme. Shearer was appointed on a temporary basis but was soon discarded.

It was then caretaker manager Hughton who took the reins as manager on a full time basis. He managed Newcastle in the Championship and got them back to the Premier League with relative ease.

Life in the Premier League started well for Newcastle under Hughton as they thrashed Aston Villa 6-0 which included a hat trick by Andy Caroll. A Carling Cup victory against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge followed soon. But the real delight for the Toons was the 5-1 win over Sunderland in the Tynewear derby helped by a Kevin Nolan hat trick. If that is not enough then how about an away win against Arsenal? A promoted team to beat Arsenal at Emirates is an amazing achievement. Not to forget their 1-1 draw with Chelsea at St. James’ Park. Newcastle were lying 11th in the Premier League table when Hughton was sacked. Isn’t that enough for a team promoted from the Championship? And that at a time when the League table starts to show it’s real colors. Alan Pardew, Alan Curbishley and Martin O’Neil are bookies favorite to replace him. Martin Jol is the latest man to join that list. But under the current circumstances, can they do any better than Hughton? And who would want to manage Newcastle who have such an illustrious history of changing managers?

Whatever happens, Chris Hughton will always be admired and respected by fans of Newcastle and players as well.